How to use our Services
Our Market
If you would like to join us in the battle against food waste there are lots of different options for you. We run a weekly Market from Greenside Social Club where everyone is welcome. Please click on the map to show the location.
Our Market runs every Thursday from 10:30 until 11:20am. We run a queuing system which has worked well for us over the years. Everyone arrives to the back entrance of the Social Club. We open the doors at 10am, where you will enter the building and will be first greeted by one of our volunteers. You pay as soon as you come in so that you can get straight in, take a seat then wait for your name to be called into the Market. We have refreshments available for only 50p each for tea/coffee (unlimited refills) and a sandwich. We sometimes also have bric-a-brac for sale, raffles or special items available which change week to week. Your waiting time for the market usually goes very quickly as there is plenty to do, and plenty of people to speak too while you wait. One your name is called you will come into the foyer to collect your basket, then enter the market. Following along the tables, each of our volunteers will let you know how many items from each basket you are able to take. Our staff are briefed before every market and can cater for you if you have any dietary requirements or allergies, just let us know!
We ask that you bring your own bag as we have a very limited supply of them and may not be able to give you one. Once you have finished the market, please remember to return your basket!
If you are finding yourself in hardship or unable to afford a bag, please let a member of staff know and we can introduce you to our Pay Forward Scheme. This allows you to get a bag for up to 6 weeks. Click on the link to the side to join our waiting list.
Happy Bags
Happy Bags are available every Friday from our main centre within Chopwell Primary School (Sports Annex). These are subscription bags which are either delivered or picked up each week. We pack the bags between 9-11am with deliveries happening between 11-1pm.
We do two different types of bags, a £5 and £8 bag. Our volunteers pre-pack each bag for you, and can tailor them to your liking. We produce over 50 bags every week with support from our local stores and Fareshare. Each bag contains a mixture of items including frozen, chilled, ambient, fruit, veg, sweet, savoury and snacks. This massively helps towards your weekly food shop, giving you new options to try and we always try and think of recipes to share with you to make sure no item goes to waste. Check out our Facebook page for our Recipe videos, and feel free to share with us what you have made @ThePicklePalaceCIO.
Our Pay Forward Scheme also covers Happy Bags, which allows you up to 6 weeks to get a free bag. This is to help you with financial difficulties, if you ever find yourself in a bad situation. Please follow the link below to fill out our form for the waiting list.
We currently have a waiting list in place for our Happy Bag subscription, if you are interested in getting a bag please fill out our form below to secure your place. Once a space becomes available we will be in touch.
Would you like to Volunteer?
We offer a wide range of volunteering roles within the charity and are always looking to expand, gain extra hands and knowledge. We are currently looking for drivers to help with our deliveries and pick ups especially for cover for when we have sickness or holidays. We have such an amazing team, all from different backgrounds, experiences and have created the Pickle family. Working with us doesn’t feel like labour but being part of a social enterprise, keeping fit and having something to be proud off. Please click the button to find out more.
Would you like to Donate?
As well as monetary and voluntary donations we collect household items for our Charity Shop. If you have any clothes, furniture or items you do not want anymore, let us know and we can arrange collection or delivery! We are unable to take any heavy, large furniture at present but are looking to gain more storage to evolve our Charity Shop.
If you have any questions, drop us a message via the Button below!